Discovered Gem: Oregon “Together” with Elvin Jones

by Anthony Medici in Album Reviews, Opinion Posts, Reviews, Uncategorized

I have only a glancing acquaintance with the group Oregon, although some of its members, like Ralph Towner are known to me.  I suppose I’ve heard enough to be interested if not convinced.  I invite Oregon fans to post to this blog entry and voice your thoughts about the group.  My own initial impression is that the group had some interesting musical ideas, the overall result was a bit pallid and airless.  Nevertheless, when I came across the Oregon LP “Together” (Vanguard, 1976) in a recent used LP foray, I was intrigued by the match up of master jazz drummer, Elvin Jones, with the group.  If  Oregon seemed pallid, Elvin was anything but,  typically offering an explosion of power and drive.  This, I thought, was a match up that was either a disaster or something special. 

I gave it a spin on the store’s turntable to see if it was worth buying.  It was.  I bought it.  I brought it home and have listened to it several times.  Frankly, I dig this album.  Elvin brings a potent foundation over which Ralph Towner (12 string and classical guitar, piano), Paul McCandless (oboe, bass clarinet, English horn, flute, clarient), Glen Moore (bass), and Collin Walcott (tabla. congas) spin some very cool, intricate and engaging melodies and harmonies. 

Walcott’s tabla gives many of the cuts on this album a decided East meets West flavor.  Towner’s guitar playing is intricate and sophisticated.  And McCandless provides a varietry of soundscapes on reeds.  His bass clarinet playing occasionally hinted of Dolphy.  Roiling beneath all is the astounding polyrythmic  attack of Elvin Jones.  It occurred to me that Elvin brings to this album a flavor of the Coltrane classic quartet, and I think this was an palpable force in the music making contained on this album.  There is a Coltrane-ish quality to the compositions on this record (which appears to be long out of print).  I think Elvin’s presence and his drumming elevated the intensity and ambition ofthis particular session.  Like a ship that sends ripples as it passes, I believe Coltrane’s legacy was still strongly felt at the time this album was made, and Elvin helped harness that artistic sensibility to this particular effort.  An album worth looking for.